The Discovery of Richard III

In August 2012, the University of Leicester in collaboration with the Richard III Society and Leicester City Council, began one of the most ambitious archaeological projects ever attempted: no less than a search for the lost grave of King Richard III. The last English king to die in battle.

Incredibly, the excavation uncovered not only the friary of Grey Friars but also a battle-scarred skeleton with spinal curvature. On 4th February 2013, the University announced to the world's press that these were the remains of King Richard III.

Read about the background to the search, the discovery and identification of the remains - and the implications for our understanding of history...

Outreach and schools resources

Find out about public events, schools activities and downloadable resources.

Activities and talks

The New Evidence

The paper detailing the genetic and genealogical research has just been published. It also includes a statistical analysis of all the evidence and comes to a conclusion about the probability of these being the remains of Richard III.